Newspapers as sources for African history

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingEntry for encyclopedia/dictionary

Abstract

Newspapers have become increasingly important as a source for African history, and the range of historical questions which newspapers have been employed to address has expanded dramatically. Newspapers are not only sources for political history, they also have much to teach us about the social, cultural and intellectual history of Africa. They were spaces of literary and textual experimentation. They also played an important role in the creation of new identities. It is however essential that we approach newspapers as sources critically and think carefully about their limitations, as well as the opportunities they present to the historian.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationOxford Research Encyclopedia of African History
EditorsThomas Spear
PublisherOxford University Press
Pages1-34
DOIs
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - Apr 2018

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

  • newspapers
  • print culture
  • archives
  • digitization
  • identities
  • publics
  • nationalism

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